Chapter 7 Safe

• ~ Ronan ~
• ‘Ronan…’
• I heard a gentle but husky voice call me. But I was busy in my sleep, dreaming about having a wonderful time with Elara. It was a sweet moment that I didn’t want to wake up from.
• ‘Alpha Ronan, wake up!’
• The voice was louder now and more heavy. I jerked out of my sleep and sat up on my bed. I look around my room and see no one, Red was still asleep as I could feel his peacefulness in me.
• ‘Are you awake?’ A voice asked.
• I sighed in relief as I realized that it was a mind link, someone was trying to communicate with me through the mind link.
• ‘Who is there?’ I asked back.
• I could hear his sigh as he replied. ‘It’s me, Lysander. For a moment, I thought you might have passed out from all the stress. Anyways, Elara is awake now and really confused about where she is. Think you can come over here in a bit?’
• ‘Of course, I will be there in less than thirty minutes.’ I said and got up to take my bath.
• My phone rang out, stopping me from entering the bathroom. I pick my phone to check who the caller is. It’s a conference call made by Kieran, Thorne and Lucian are added as participants in the call.
• “Kieran, do you mind telling us why you called in the early hours of the morning? And it better be a solid reason,” Thorne snapped angrily.
• “I called because I have something important to tell the three of you,” Kieran replied.
• “I hope it is worth this call because if it’s not…” Lucian started but I stopped him.
• “Relax, let’s hear what Kieran has to say,” I cut Lucian off.
• “Elara is missing,” Kieran informed us.
• I thought as much. It was about time that he discovered that she was longer in the prison he threw her in. But I didn’t know if my trail was covered or not, I needed to find out from Kieran right now.
• “Any leads on where she must have gone?” I asked him.
• “No, I don’t have any leads. The hope was the two guards outside the gates but they have been saying crazy things about encountering a strange creature,” Kieran replied.
• “Strange creature? Inside the packlands? Impossible!” Thorne exclaimed.
• “What if it’s a beast or a miniature that attacked Elara and took her away? Oh my goddess!” Lucian cried dramatically.
• I rolled my eyes. “Lucian, get yourself together. If there was a beast in the packlands, our Deltas would have informed us about it. I am certain that there is no other creature living inside the packlands except for werewolves.”
• The Deltas were in charge of protecting the pack at the Pack’s borders, marking our territories and warding off outsiders from attacking the pack. The Gamma’s protection lies inside the pack, while the Delta’s protection lies outside the pack.
• “Then what is the best explanation for Elara’s disappearance, huh?” Lucian asked.
• “Kieran, you had one job to do and that was to carry out whatever punishment you wanted to give to Elara. Now, she’s missing, how do you explain that?” Thorne asked. I could feel his anger rising from over the phone.
• “It wasn’t my fault. The guards are meant to protect the prisoners from escaping and the fact that they can’t even give a detailed explanation of what happened to Elara is very disappointing,” Kieran replied.
• “We have to send out scouts immediately to search for Elara,” Thorne suggested.
• The Scout is in charge of gathering information for the pack they serve. They are good at interacting with secrecy and intelligence to extract necessary information for the pack. Lysander, who I asked to watch over Elara, is my pack’s Scout. One thing I love about Scouts is that their loyalty is top notch and highly valued. They are also good at protecting the pack’s image.
• “Agreed. We have to do this effectively,” Lucian said.
• “Uhm… my pack’s Scout is very busy at the moment so I will be sending out a troop of pack warriors instead,” I said.
• “Ronan, do you ever stick to the plan?” Lucian asked sarcastically.
• “I promise to send the best warriors out to search for Elara,” I replied with haste.
• “Let him do whatever he wants, I don’t care. Since I can still feel the mate bond, it means that Elara is still alive. Let’s find her,” Thorne said and hung up.
• Sighing, I hung up too and went to the bathroom to freshen up. Elara’s disappearance must be triggering for Thorne and Lucian but I can’t fill them in on where she is until I’m certain that Elara can stand up for herself wherever she is.
• I drove to the hospital very fast and rushed to the room where Elara was now transferred to. Lysander and Liora were standing beside her while Elara was drinking a medicinal soup meant for calming the nerves. She was looking a bit disoriented, but otherwise unharmed.
• “Elara,” I called softly as I approached her. She looked up , relief washing over her face when she saw me.
• “Ronan,” she whispered, her voice trembling slightly.
• “It’s okay,” I assured her, gently taking her hands. “You are safe here.”
• “Where is this place?” She asked, confused.
• “Starfrost pack. I brought you here, remember?”
• Her face softened as she seemed to remember the details of what happened. Then her face turned pale again. “But Kieran, if he knows that I’m here, he will kill me.”
• I clenched my fists in anger but composed myself. “He will not find you here, no one will unless you want me to tell them.”
• Her decision was also important to me. I don’t want to be inconsiderate like Kieran was.
• She shook her head, “No, I don’t want anyone to find me.”
• “Drink up your soup, it will help calm your nerves,” I said to her and signaled Liora to meet me outside the room.
• “What’s the update on her recovery process?” I asked her.
• Liora sighed, “Slow, her vitals are down. It will take a lot of time for her to recover fully.”
• “Can I take her to the packhouse and schedule a daily routine for her with you? As you can see, no one must know who Elara is,” I whispered.
• She raised her brows in confusion. “Why?”
• “Because she is my mate, Liora. I trust you to keep it as a secret too,” I demanded and she nodded.
• “My lips are sealed. She can go back to the packhouse and rest fully, she will be needing a lot of it,” Liora replied.
• I nodded and went back inside. “We are going back to the packhouse,” I informed Elara.
• We waited for her to relax after eating before leaving the hospital through the back door where nobody will see us. When we returned to the packhouse, everything was arranged just like I had instructed.
• “Welcome to Starfrost’s packhouse, Elara,” I said. I looked at her to see what expression she had on her face, it was clear that she loved it.
• “It’s so beautiful,” she said in awe.
• “I’m glad you like it. Let me take you to your room,” I offered and she agreed.
• I took her to the second master bedroom, which was only a few steps away from my bedroom. When I opened the door, Elara’s mouth dropped open.
• “This is my room?” She asked, obviously petrified.
• “Yes, this is your own. Your closet is empty for now but you can wear one of my shirts for the time being. There’s a balcony for you to watch the sky in the evenings and a mini bookshelf filled with interesting books for you to read in your spare time,” I told her.
• Her eyes watered and she held me tight. “I have never slept in such a beautiful room since I was born. Thank you, Ronan , for this rare privilege.”
• I was touched by her words. Elara must have gone through a lot of tough things while growing up. But it is over now, I am going to be here for her all the time.
• “You are welcome,” I said and left, allowing Elara to get some rest. After all, I had an important task to take care of today.
• As night fell, everywhere grew quieter. I returned to the packhouse and went straight to Elara’s room to check on her. She wasn’t in her room but I could see her slender shadow on the balcony. She was staring at the clear sky that had a bright crystal moon on it. I knocked softly on the doorframe before stepping into the balcony.
• “Mind if I join you?” I asked.
• She nodded and I took a seat beside her. For a moment, we sat in silence, the only sound being the distant howls of wolves.
• “I know this is all overwhelming,” I began, my voice gentle. “But I want you to know that you are not alone. I will protect you, no matter what.”
• Elara turned to look at me, her eyes were filled with a mix of gratitude and uncertainty. “Why are you doing this for me, Ronan?”
• “Because you matter,” I replied simply. “To me, to this pack. We take care of our own.”
• Elara nodded, a small smile forming on her lips. “Thank you, Ronan. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”
• I reached out and gently squeezed her hand. “You don’t have to worry about that. You are safe here, and we will face whatever challenges we come across together.”
• As we sat there, I felt the bond between us as it grew stronger.